Editing IBM PC compatible (section)

==The decreasing influence of IBM==
{{quote|The main reason why an IBM standard is not worrying is that it can help competition to flourish. IBM will soon be as much a prisoner of its standards as its competitors are. Once enough IBM machines have been bought, IBM cannot make sudden changes in their basic design; what might be useful for shedding competitors would shake off even more customers.|''The Economist'', November 1983{{r|economist19831126}}}}
[[File:PowerPak 286 running AutoCAD on MS-DOS (1987).jpg|thumb|The PowerPak [[Intel 80286|286]], an IBM PC compatible computer running [[AutoCAD]] under [[MS-DOS]]]]
[[File:DeskPro 386S.jpg|thumb|IBM PC compatible computer with processor [[i386|Intel&nbsp;80386]]]]
[[File:MikroMikko 4 TT m216 Tekniikan museo 01.jpg|thumb|IBM PC compatible computer with processor [[i486|Intel&nbsp;80486]]]]
[[File:Ibm300pl.jpg|thumb|IBM 300 PL computer with processor Intel [[Pentium (original)|Pentium&nbsp;I]] and [[Windows 95]]]]
[[File:Dell Desktop Computer in school classroom.jpg|thumb|[[Dell]] OptiPlex with processor Intel [[Pentium&nbsp;4]]]]
In February 1984 ''Byte'' wrote that "IBM's burgeoning influence in the PC community is stifling innovation because so many other companies are mimicking Big Blue",<ref name="curran198402">{{cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-02/1984_02_BYTE_09-02_Benchmarks#page/n5/mode/2up | title=The Compatibility Craze |magazine=BYTE | date=Feb 1984 | access-date=August 26, 2015 | author=Curran, Lawrence J. |page=4}}</ref> but ''[[The Economist]]'' stated in November 1983, "The main reason why an IBM standard is not worrying is that it can help competition to flourish".<ref name="economist19831126">{{Cite magazine |date=November 26, 1983 |title=Can Anybody Tackle IBM? |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UCIvSU6Y2GAC&pg=PA125 |magazine=The Economist}}</ref>

By 1983, IBM had about 25% of sales of personal computers between {{US$|long=no|1000}} and {{US$|long=no|10000}}, and computers with some PC compatibility were another 25%.{{r|salisbury19840209}} As the market and competition grew IBM's influence diminished. Writing that even "IBM has to continue to be IBM compatible", in November 1985 ''PC Magazine'' stated "Now that it has created the [PC] market, the market doesn't necessarily need IBM for the machines. It may depend on IBM to set standards and to develop higher-performance machines, but IBM had better conform to existing standards so as to not hurt users".<ref name="machrone19851126">{{cite news |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VUKL2rKYb8UC&pg=PA59 | title=Compatibility Wars—Here and Abroad | work=PC Magazine | date=November 26, 1985 | access-date=October 29, 2013 | author=Machrone, Bill | pages=59}}</ref> Observers noted IBM's silence when the industry that year quickly adopted the [[expanded memory]] standard, created by Lotus and Intel without IBM's participation.<ref name="maremaa19850617">{{Cite magazine |last=Maremaa |first=Tom |date=1985-06-17 |title=Board Makers Flock to New Standard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FS8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA30 |access-date=2025-05-01 |magazine=InfoWorld |pages=30–34 |volume=7 |issue=24}}</ref> In January 1987, [[Bruce Webster]] wrote in ''Byte'' of rumors that IBM would introduce proprietary personal computers with [[OS/2|a proprietary operating system]]: "Who cares? If IBM does it, they will most likely just isolate themselves from the largest marketplace, in which they really can't compete anymore anyway". He predicted that in 1987 the market "will complete its transition from an IBM standard to an Intel/MS-DOS/expansion bus standard ... Folks aren't so much concerned about IBM compatibility as they are about Lotus 1-2-3 compatibility".<ref name="webster198701">{{cite news |url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1987-01/1987_01_BYTE_12-01_Programmable_Hardware#page/n391/mode/2up | title=View and Reviews | work=[[Byte (magazine)|Byte]] | date=January 1987 | access-date=November 4, 2013 | author=Webster, Bruce | pages=367}}</ref> By 1992, ''[[Macworld]]'' stated that because of clones, "IBM lost control of its own market and became a minor player with its own technology".<ref name="borrell199205">{{Cite magazine |last=Borrell |first=Jerry |date=May 1992 |title=Opening Pandora's Box |url=https://archive.org/stream/MacWorld_9205_May_1992#page/n21/mode/2up |magazine=Macworld |pages=21–22}}</ref>

''The Economist'' predicted in 1983 that "IBM will soon be as much a prisoner of its standards as its competitors are", because "Once enough IBM machines have been bought, IBM cannot make sudden changes in their basic design; what might be useful for shedding competitors would shake off even more customers".{{r|economist19831126}} After the [[Compaq Deskpro 386]] became the first 80386-based PC, ''PC'' wrote that owners of the new computer did not need to fear that future IBM products would be incompatible with the Compaq, because such changes would also affect millions of real IBM PCs: "In sticking it to the competition, IBM would be doing the same to its own people".<ref name="howard19861125">{{Cite magazine |last=Howard |first=Bill |date=1986-11-25 |title=386 Compatibility: What, Me Worry? |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UwLE_FWJ-_0C&pg=PA141 |access-date=2024-11-01 |magazine=PC |page=141}}</ref> After IBM announced the [[OS/2]]-oriented PS/2 line in early 1987, sales of existing DOS-compatible PC compatibles rose, in part because the proprietary operating system was not available.<ref name="parker19870504">{{Cite magazine |last=Parker |first=Rachel |date=May 4, 1987 |title=PC Vendors' Sales Rise Following PS/2 Debut |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zzwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA3 |magazine=InfoWorld |pages=1, 85}}</ref> In 1988, [[Gartner Group]] estimated that the public purchased 1.5 clones for every IBM PC.<ref name="scisco198812">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/1988-12-compute-magazine/Compute_Issue_103_1988_Dec#page/n11/mode/2up | title=Bus, Bus, Magic Bus | work=Compute! | date=December 1988 | access-date=November 10, 2013 | author=Scisco, Peter | pages=10}}</ref> By 1989 Compaq was so influential that industry executives spoke of "Compaq compatible", with observers stating that customers saw the company as IBM's equal<ref name="iw19890123">{{cite news | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KzoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PP1 | title=Compaq Vying To Become the IBM of the '90s | work=InfoWorld | date=January 23, 1989 | access-date=March 17, 2016 |author1=LaPlante, Alice |author2=Furger, Roberta | pages=1, 8}}</ref> or superior.{{r|lewis19891022}} A 1990 [[American Institute of Certified Public Accountants]] member survey found that 23% of respondents used IBM computer hardware, and 16% used Compaq.<ref name="aicpa1990">{{Cite report |url=https://egrove.olemiss.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1563&context=aicpa_guides |title=1990 AICPA survey of computer usage |author-link=American Institute of Certified Public Accountants |year=1990 |id=561 |access-date=2025-04-30}}</ref>

After 1987, IBM PC compatibles dominated both the home and business markets of commodity computers,<ref name="Reimer">{{cite web|url=https://arstechnica.com/articles/culture/total-share.ars/4|title=Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures|last=Reimer|first=Jeremy |website=Ars Technica|date=December 15, 2005|access-date=September 13, 2008}}</ref> with other notable alternative architectures being used in niche markets, like the [[Macintosh]] computers offered by [[Apple Inc.]] and used mainly for [[desktop publishing]] at the time, the aging 8-bit [[Commodore 64]] which was selling for $150 by this time and became the world's bestselling computer, the 32-bit [[Amiga|Commodore Amiga]] line used for [[television]] and [[video production]] and the 32-bit [[Atari ST]] used by the music industry. However, IBM itself lost the main role in the market for IBM PC compatibles by 1990. A few events in retrospect are important:

* IBM designed the PC with an [[open architecture]] which permitted clone makers to use freely available non-proprietary components.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Miller|first1=Michael|title=Why The IBM PC Had An Open Architecture|url=http://forwardthinking.pcmag.com/pc-hardware/286065-why-the-ibm-pc-had-an-open-architecture|website=forwardthinking dot pcmag dot com|publisher=Ziff Davis|access-date=June 27, 2017}}</ref>
* Microsoft included a clause in its contract with IBM which permitted the sale of the finished PC operating system ([[PC DOS]]) to other computer manufacturers. These IBM competitors licensed it, as [[MS-DOS]], in order to offer PC compatibility for less cost.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Brown|first1=Marcel|title=IBM Signs A Deal With The Devil|url=http://thisdayintechhistory.com/11/06/ibm-signs-a-deal-with-the-devil/|website=thisdayintechhistory dot com|publisher=MB Tech, Inc.|access-date=June 27, 2017}}</ref>
* The 1982 introduction of the [[Columbia Data Products]] MPC 1600, the first 100% IBM PC compatible computer.
* The 1983 introduction of the [[Compaq Portable]], providing portability unavailable from IBM at the time.
* An Independent Business Unit (IBU) within IBM developed the IBM PC and XT. IBUs did not share in corporate [[research and development|R&D]] expense. After the IBU became the Entry Systems Division it lost this benefit, greatly decreasing margins.<ref name="killen1984fall">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-09/1984_09_BYTE_09-09_Guide_to_the_IBM_PCs#page/n33/mode/2up | title=IBM Forecast / Market Dominance | work=[[Byte (magazine)|Byte]] | date=Fall 1984 | access-date=March 18, 2016 | author=Killen, Michael | pages=30–38}}</ref>
* The availability by 1986 of sub-{{US$|long=no|1000}} "Turbo XT" [[PC XT]] compatibles, including early offerings from [[Dell|Dell Computer]], reducing demand for IBM's models.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vi8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA33|title=InfoWorld July 1986 ad: "Career Starter Kit: Everything you need to begin serious computing immediately"|date=July 7, 1986}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vy8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA54|title=InfoWorld July 1986|date=July 28, 1986}}</ref> It was possible to buy two of these "generic" systems for less than the cost of one IBM-branded [[PC AT]], and many companies did just that.
* By integrating more peripherals into the computer itself, compatibles like the Model D have more free [[Industry Standard Architecture|ISA]] slots than the PC.{{r|freeze19851216}}
* Compaq was the first to release an [[Intel 80386]]-based computer, almost a year before IBM,<ref name="lewis19891022">{{Cite news |last=Lewis |first=Peter H. |date=October 22, 1989 |title=THE EXECUTIVE COMPUTER; The Race to Market a 486 Machine |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/22/business/the-executive-computer-the-race-to-market-a-486-machine.html |access-date=May 20, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> with the [[Compaq Deskpro 386]]. [[Bill Gates]] later said that it was "the first time people started to get a sense that it wasn't just IBM setting the standards".<ref name="millergates19970325">{{Cite interview |last=Gates |first=Bill |interviewer=Michael J. Miller |title=Interview: Bill Gates, Microsoft |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wVDB2C8IJRYC&pg=PA230 |date=March 25, 1997 |pages=230-235}}</ref>
* IBM's 1987 introduction of the incompatible and proprietary [[MicroChannel Architecture]] (MCA) [[bus (computing)|computer bus]], for its [[IBM Personal System/2|Personal System/2]] (PS/2) line.{{r|scisco198812}}
* The split of the IBM-Microsoft partnership in development of [[OS/2]]. Tensions caused by the market success of [[Windows 3.0]] [[OS/2#1990: Breakup|ruptured the joint effort]] because IBM was committed to the 286's protected mode, which stunted OS/2's technical potential. Windows could take full advantage of the modern and increasingly affordable 386 / 386SX architecture. As well, there were cultural differences between the partners, and Windows was often bundled with new computers while OS/2 was only available for extra cost. The split left IBM the sole steward of OS/2 and it failed to keep pace with Windows.
* The 1988 introduction by the "Gang of Nine" companies of a rival bus, [[Extended Industry Standard Architecture]], intended to compete with, rather than copy, MCA.{{r|scisco198812}}
* The duelling expanded memory (EMS){{r|maremaa19850617}} and [[extended memory]] (XMS) standards of the late 1980s, both developed without input from IBM.

Despite popularity of its [[ThinkPad]] set of laptop PC's, IBM finally relinquished its role as a consumer PC manufacturer during April 2005, when it [[Acquisition of the IBM PC business by Lenovo|sold its laptop and desktop PC divisions]] ([[ThinkPad]]/[[ThinkCentre]]) to [[Lenovo]] for {{US$|1.75 billion}}.

As of October 2007, [[Hewlett-Packard]] and [[Dell]] had the largest shares of the PC market in North America. They were also successful overseas, with [[Acer Inc.|Acer]], [[Lenovo]], and [[Toshiba]] also notable. Worldwide, a huge number of PCs are "[[White box (computer hardware)|white box]]" systems assembled by myriad local systems builders. Despite advances of computer technology, the IBM PC compatibles remained very much compatible with the original IBM PC computers, although most of the components implement the compatibility in special [[backward compatibility]] modes used only during a [[computer system|system]] [[booting|boot]]. It was often more practical to run old software on a modern system using an [[emulator]] rather than relying on these features.

In 2014 Lenovo acquired IBM's x86-based server ([[IBM System x|System x]]) business for {{US$|2.1 billion}}.